


Death is Just a Stepping Stone

by Pinepickled



Series: In the Snowfields [1]
Category: Naruto
Genre: Angst, Canonical Character Death, I Made Myself Cry, Other, Snow, Spirits, Yôkai
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-10-02
Updated: 2020-10-02
Packaged: 2021-03-07 23:02:49
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Major Character Death
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,447
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/26775574
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Pinepickled/pseuds/Pinepickled
Summary: Snow fell lazily from the sky, and Kakashi knew something was wrong.
Relationships: Hatake Sakumo/Ootsutsuki Kaguya
Series: In the Snowfields [1]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/1952017
Comments: 4
Kudos: 60





	Death is Just a Stepping Stone

Kakashi watched curiously as the soft snow continued to fall, slowly blanketing the streets in white sheen. It was the middle of summer.

_ Papa must be upset _ , Kakashi thought, feeling mild panic grow in his stomach. Papa didn't get upset about many things, so something really bad must have happened. The young wolf decided to stay where he was for another few minutes, and then go searching.

Out of the corner of his eye, he saw Rin preparing to leave. She'd stayed behind to help tutor Obito, but he'd been called away last second by Nee-san. Kakashi briefly wanted to call out to her, ask her to come over for dinner and play, but not today. Today, Papa was upset and would need all of Kakashi's attention

Kakashi let out a sigh of relief when he saw his Papa turn the corner and approach the playground Kakashi was waiting in. Papa was wearing his usual jounin uniform, the signature Uzumaki clan crest, tanto, and silver hair making him stand in stark contrast to the parents around him. Kakashi had no clue how Papa handled the cold when he had nothing warm on him. Kakashi was shivering and he was wearing a scarf! The silver haired kid chalked it up to adult Hatake techniques. 

Though, Papa looked tired. Papa had deep eyebags on the best of days, but today he looked like a starving Yuki-onna, wandering through the streets like an icy ghost of someone so beautiful long gone. Kakashi shook the unbidden thought from his head and ran up to his father, purring and chirping in happiness. Sakumo's eyes lit up, and Kakashi relaxed as his Papa began rubbing his scent into the silver pup.

Kakashi smiled under his mask, and snuggled closer to his dad. Sakumo was ice cold, as he usually was, but it soothed something in Kakashi, so the cold was long forgotten in his father's arms. Suddenly remembering that it was snowing, Kakashi looked his father straight in the eyes, hoping to come off as serious and stern.

"Papa. Why are you sad?" A multitude of expressions flickered across Sakumo's face, too fast for Kakashi to even hope to read. Eventually, Papa settled on a tired smile and shook his head. Later, it meant. Kakashi huffed, yet cuddled closer to his father anyway. Papa was a mysterious person, so it wasn't out of place that he liked to keep his secrets. 

The temperature slowly began to drop as the two wolves stalked further and further away from Konoha's heart, closer and closer to their home. Only people in or on the verge of poverty lived near the Hatake compound. These were families that had none or little chakra potential, or those who had pissed off a major clan, or anyone unfortunate enough to be struggling with a disability that the medic core could not fix. They gathered here because the Hatake have always taken care of and looked after them. They were like a second family to Kakashi, right after his Papa and his pack.

Finally they arrived at their door, the temperature so low that icicles hung from the branches in the trees, so cold that the very air stood still. It wasn't always like this. Papa was making it so, though not on purpose. Papa hurried Kakashi inside and to the closet, swiftly taking out a well-insulated cloak and wrapping the pup securely, and then taking a cloak for himself. That was  _ very  _ odd. Papa never got cold, even though he  _ was  _ cold. Cold as in if you poured water over the older Hatake, it would freeze, not cold in the way normal people felt it, a cold that prompted blankets and fire. Hatake had no need for coats and fire. They were lightning and ice, thunder and snow.

Kakashi carefully tucked the observation in the back of his mind and made his way to the kitchen. Oka and Yuki were laying on the ground, sleeping it looked like. You could never really know with wolf summons. Kakashi carefully stepped over them and opened the fridge, taking out the bento they'd made this morning and setting it on the table, where Sakumo had already sat. They ate in silence, aside from the comforting rumble of the sleeping wolves and Papa's soothing purr. Once they were done, Sakumo guided Kakashi to the altar.

This altar was supposed to be for Kakashi's mother, but Sakumo had no pictures of her. There was no incense either, since nothing in the Hatake compound could catch fire. It was too cold for that. The only thing that could possibly identify that this was an altar at all were the two katanas hung on the wall, both of excellent quality or so Kakashi was told. They were both silver and ethereal, intricate designs running through the sheath, firm, unidentifiable material making up the hilts. One sword had a rabbit motif, almost cute in nature if not for the vacant, cold, and unforgiving eyes painstakingly carved onto the sword. The other sword had a wolf motif, yet despite the predatory nature of the animal, this sword was docile, the wolves delicately imprinted onto the sheath, not in battle poses but in curious and friendly gestures. It baffled Kakashi to no end why his mother would craft the swords this way, the only explanation he'd ever been able to come up with being that she had a sense of humor unlike anything he'd ever heard.

Sakumo turned to face Kakashi, sitting down carefully and taking off his tanto. Kakashi's breath hitched at the blade, cold steel so imbued with his father's chakra it was painfully noticeable even out of use. Sakumo held out the tanto, and smiled happily when Kakashi took it. Sakumo then took out a kunai, and before Kakashi could get up expecting to spar, his Papa held up a hand.

"Not today, Kakashi. Today is a different kind of day." Kakashi tilted his head, confused.

"That is my gift to you, Kakashi. I want it to protect you, to be your last resort when all else fails. I want you to remember me when you use it, and remember how much I love you. Remember that even if I'm not around, I will protect you." He said, voice even and smooth. Kakashi still didn't understand, but an uneasy feeling was growing in his stomach.

"Now Kakashi, I want you to remember something else too," Papa said, removing his jounin jacket, plain black shirt underneath. Sakumk raised the kunai to his stomach and looked Kakashi square in the eye.

"Death is just another stepping stone," Papa said, delivering one quick slash deep into his stomach. Kakashi flinched, but couldn't dwell on the blood. Papa was still speaking.

"It's just like losing teeth. Like getting taller." Sakumo said, no pain or wobble in his voice. Kakashi knew this saying. The old Hatake spirits would tack it on after most of their fairy tales. The pup never thought he would see it in practice. He wanted to throw up.

"This is the time for me to go, Kakashi. The clan I made peace with is long dead. The village people despise me so much they target my own son. The village leaders want to use me as an excuse for war. For money. So I will give them my final act of peace. I will die." Sakumo said, an almost amused expression on his face.  _ It could be pain too _ , Kakashi thinks. 

"Papa, I…" Kakashi started, voice dying. Papa only nodded, understanding. 

"You're going to be just fine, pup. During the cold days when snow falls unprompted, I will be watching you. Every night when the moon rises and lights your way, your mother is looking out for you. We love you." Papa paused, a rueful smile spreading over his face. "Will you stay with me while I pass?" Sakumo asked. It was the polite thing to do, at the very least. In the Hatake pack, no wolf died alone. Kakashi was the only living wolf on this side of the compound. Without a word, Kakashi crawled forward and laid down with his father, just the edges of the setting sun visible from their place below the altar. 

Sakumo held his pup close and began to hum, a slow tune Kakashi used to hear through the doors of the compound. The old wolf spirits liked to hum this song while they worked in the fields and through the house. Kakashi shut his eyes tightly, focusing only on the ice of his father's skin, the unnaturally cold liquid of his father's blood, and the haunting tune of his father's voice.

**Author's Note:**

> hoo boy, this was sad. This is the first work in a series of shorts that i'll be doing in this AU of mine, so stay tuned if you like this sort of thing! The Nee-san that called Obito away was Mikoto btw. I'll be explaining that later on in this series. Comments are always appreciated! See you next time :D


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